Beluran river kruize (for its not really a cruise)

Drove to Beluran during a long holiday, had promised a good friend that i'll visit him and there is no better time than this to see him and his family.

A long drive from KK, alone passing the mountain ridge, unfamiliar terrain past Kinabalu, driving at 0400hrs, foggy road and cold weather. The day get clearer as i past the mountain, stopped at telupid for a cup of nescafe.. Nothing beats the warm smell of coffee on the cold morning. Everyone staring at the 'newcomer' at the shop. I can understand that, its not always they get a dark skinned visitor around the town.

Note to myself - Beware of the missing roads along telupid - i saw that when i was travelling to Tawau/Semporna 2 years back, on a bus. So i gotta be careful in this stretch.. and yup, i was rite, they haven't fixed the road yet. Wonder how a place this beautiful being neglected to this extend.. why the government has not done anything to rectify this small problem all over sabah.. Well, seen lamp post and cables going to the kampungs in the interior part of Paitan, but the people are still using generator for power.. Asked them why aren't there any supplies when the electric post is there. The village simply says "itu urg kerajaan janji mo kasi lampu, pasang nie tiang sebelum tu pilihanraya... nie abis suda tu pilihanraya, masi teda karan sini bos", she says.. (the people from the government came before the election, erect all the electric post here and promised to supply electricity to the place, the election is over, yet the electrictity still not available). But people here never complains, the smile on the face is genuine, the warmth of a friendship is true. Something that makes you love the place more and more.

Now back to my story... I finally reached Beluran, its not hard to find it actually.. Just follow the signboard and your are there, 5 hours away from KK.. a long drive yet wonderful to see all the lovely scenes along the road.

Well, The best part is yet to come.. Kampung Air???? When did my friend told me that he is living in a house in Kampung Air (water village - houses built on stilts above the water).. And why he look like a stranger now?? He dun have the kadazan look anymore (pendek tagap), he's skinny now and blends well with the locals there, mostly bugis, tidong and sungai,

And guess where was my 1st stop?? Kenduri doa tahlil, at one of the houses in the kampung hahaha.. KRAZY...!! Why the hell he took me there when i'm not even a muslim (tapi takpe la, kena jaga air muka tuan rumah, bedal jer la labu) had my lunch there and chill all day long.. a simple home, friendly neighbourhood, not a single door was shut close and every where you go, you feel welcomed. Didnt know they are this friendly.. hahhaha.. (Phobia pas kes Pulau Gaya). The night i went to Pak Ujang's house, an experienced boat man, to take me along the Beluran river, something like a river cruise thingy la, without any tour operator along to cut your throat. Deal was sealed and went to bed feeling great.

The break of dawn and we were cruising out from the village into the main river, the scene was gorgeous, beautiful. How lucky this people are to live in this part of the world, come on.. how many of us get to see this view everyday? All we know is we wake up and rush to work and by the time the sunsets where are too tired to even smell the roses in our own yard, provided you have your own yard that is..

And this, would be the greatest photo i took that day. I saw the birds (eagles, mostly the seahawks, brahminy kites and crested serpents eagles) circling the water, like a dive bombers they hit the water from the sky. and i tot they didnt get anything, futile attempts.. only to realise it was a great catch, for me and the birds after uploading into my laptop.. ahahaha.. how our eyes perceive things.. Note to myself - amma (mom) always says, never judge a book by its cover. (topik takde kaitan)

And in this wooden boat i cruised down the river, or was it cruising up the river.. i dun even know where we were heading, all i know, the boat man took me along the river, in and out the forks along it. And this is one of the highlight of the cruise, Mendagu waterfall.. waterfall eh?? hahha.. water falling from a plateau into the pond thats is connected to the river.. but the route to this place is gorgeous.. and its hidden well inside the nipah vegetation.. not all know the way to go there, only the locals and few outsiders ever knew about it..

the whole trip was great... so many beautiful creatures.. how many people out there really knows that proboscis monkey thrive here?? at least one thing for sure, there aren't any tourist flocking this wilderness yet.. maybe one day they will come in dozen or maybe they'll develop this scenic wilderness into oil palm plantation.. we'll never know..

Left the place with one thing in my mind.. how long will all the wildlife here survive. How long will it take for human to understand that this animals has rights to live a life the way they want to.. instead of cages, wildlife park or something.. if money comes in (eco-tourism) they are protected, if not this proboscis are shot for being the pest to farmers. well.. wonder who invade whose land here, the animal or the human..